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I make a lot of my money as an affiliate marketer, but it’s not by doing it the way most experts are telling you to do it. I’ll show you how I do it towards the end of this article, but first FOUR TOUGH TRUTHS about affiliate marketing.
There is NOTHING for sale in this blog post. This is just my attempt to save my loyal readers time, effort and money. I want you to SUCCEED and I want you to have a long term SOLID online business.
Stop reading this punk. You can't handle the truth.
This is my best advice on affiliate marketing:
In my opinion affiliate marketing IS NOT the place for ANY CLEAR THINKING person to start out online if the goal is to actually earn money!
For the newbie: What is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing has NEVER been easy, and recently it’s been getting a lot harder. The odds, google, product owners, customers, laws, and technology are all steadily stacking against you.
Affiliate marketing is a fantastic business model, but for every 500 people taking a stab at it there are maybe a small handful making any decent return on their time and money.
To be clear, I allow affiliates to sell my products and THAT is GENIUS, but this article is for those that are considering or are already knee deep in affiliate marketing themselves WITHOUT any of their own products.
Here are Four Truths about affiliate marketing that you won’t likely see compiled ANYWHERE else online. I’m uniquely qualified to deliver this “bad news”.
I’m about to really tick off some ‘friends’ in the guru business…but that’s become normal for me these days.
1. It’s FAR EASIER to make money teaching “affiliate marketing tactics” than it is to actually make money as an affiliate!
There are a lot of “gurus” getting rich off of teaching you (especially newbies) their “simple steps” to affiliate income. Step one is almost always “build a website” and all the expenses that go with it. They know that if they teach you that step in an easy to follow fashion that you’ll have a great deal of pride in your site when it’s done. They also KNOW that it will take up to several months for you to realize that it’s not making you any significant money (this is true for 95% of their students).
It amazes me how many people will buy these “systems” and immediately offer up glowing testimonials about the beautiful website that some kind guru helped them set up. It’s strange though – the testimonials almost NEVER include any indication that any money is being made by the proud owners of these shiny new websites. Maybe that’s because NO ONE EVER SEES THE WEBSITES!
I’ll repeat: The raw truth (that ALL guru’s know) is that somewhere around 95% of all affiliate marketers aren’t making more than a few bucks per month if they are earning anything at all.
In fact if you want to get rich selling useless stuff to naive people you should set up a “Simple Ten Step System to Building Your First Website and Loading it up with Affiliate links”. If you put enough eye-candy on your website and offer a high enough commission to the “circle of gurus” you’ll make a boatload of money fast. I call it “selling out” or “taking advantage of people”, but if that’s within your moral code then go for it. The naive masses are waiting and anxious for the next $2,000 miracle course.
Ring any bells? Don’t name any names if you leave a comment, or I won’t approve your comment, but let’s get real here. We all know this is happening.
...guess which character you are Mr. Affiliate Marketer?
2. As an affiliate marketer you are EXPENDABLE. You are competing with two parties for attention: the product owner whose brand you are promoting and Google who considers you a content spammer. In other words you are the middle man and you WILL be cut out eventually because NEITHER SIDE LIKES HAVING YOU AROUND long term and NEITHER SIDE NEEDS YOU long term either.
From Google’s perspective they want a user (someone typing a search term into google) to have the optimal experience which means they go straight from google.com to the information they are looking for without any middle men (affiliate marketers) clogging the works.
For those selling a product (and offering affiliates a commission) it only makes sense for them to pay attention to what the top affiliates are doing and then COPY IT themselves and KEEP THE COMMISSIONS. We’ll keep the nickle and dime affiliates around, but anyone making a killing has a HUGE TARGET on their chest.
The evidence is mounting that affiliate marketers are being squeezed out. I’ve even read reports from the recent ‘Affiliate Marketing Summit’ where Google representatives are being quoted as saying things like, “affiliate marketers have served their purpose as far as we are concerned.” Look at all the google slaps, penalties, Adsense account shut downs and streams of new vague rules etc.
For those that have followed my eBay adventures it feels like Google is starting to treat affiliate marketers the way eBay started treating eBay sellers a few years ago. They claim to still like us still (sometimes), but the evidence for that stance is sorely lacking. They certainly don’t NEED us like they used to. To be clear Google DOES NOT NEED more affiliate marketers nor will they ever, and eBay DOES NOT NEED more sellers nor will they ever. To be clear though – my eBay business is BOOMING because of the non-traditional approach we take to using eBay in my business.
3. You MUST constantly be adding, testing, tweaking, adapting or your income will fade without warning.
I know of no affiliate marketers that are still having success with the strategies they were using six months ago. Affiliate marketing in my opinion has become very opportunistic, cut throat, unpredictable, and unsteady for 95% of those playing the game.
The stories of affiliate marketers going from rags to riches and then back to rags are EVERYWHERE. Show me someone that relies on their google rank for a paycheck and I’ll show you someone that won’t have a paycheck much longer. Google really enjoys flipping switches and scrambling page one results in pursuit of the perfect mix of content and end user experience.
4. Anyone selling affiliate “how to” information isn’t going to like me much any more and I’m OK with that.
There have been many big launches that I’ve sat out. I’m not winning any powerful new friends when I tell the truth like this, but I’m betting on YOU. I want you to be SMART, have SUCCESS and then tell others they can trust me and my advice. It’s a long term growth strategy that’s been working pretty well for me for almost a decade now.
OK Jim, I get it…what’s the good new about affiliate marketing?
Want to know how I earn affiliate income? The answer is hidden in this article and on this blog. It’s right in front of you, but you probably missed it so I’ll help you out…
While there are NO AFFILIATE LINKS anywhere in this article that you just read, what have I just accomplished inside of you as you’ve read this post?
Specifically…
Do you trust me more or less after reading this?
Are you more or less likely to buy something I endorse in my next blog post or newsletter?
Affiliate marketing done right DOES NOT involve selling to strangers in my opinion. It involves earning trust over time (it takes TIME)! It involves making gentle suggestions to friends that trust you. It involves recommending products that you genuinely believe in and stand behind. It involves having loyal followers that WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU and also have no problem with you getting a commission for your insightful endorsements.
Here’s a FANTASTIC new course on this topic form a trusted colleague of mine (and it’s only a few bucks!): Click Here to learn affiliate marketing the RIGHT way
That’s the big secret.
Not very flashy is it?
Six months from now you'll see this image when you think of me...
If you don’t believe me then please go buy ANY of the $1997 big launch packages from 2010 and then come back and. I’ll sound like a freekin’ genius then.
What’s next? Get your head on straight with these popular blog posts that will help clear the stinkin’ thinkin’ out of your brain.
- Success online with ANY business DOES NOT START WITH Building a website – it starts by growing a loyal audience
- Starting small is GREAT because it WORKS and you’ll get BIG fast enough!
- One way to grow your audience
- Here’s a new course on doing affiliate marketing the RIGHT way
And for goodness sakes leave me a comment (link is at the top)! Guru’s don’t like me anymore so I’m really hoping you still do! ;0)
Jim has been correct and ahead of the game in my mind since I first bought a book from him in 2004. Excellent, honest source for help with your online and offline endeavors.
Jim,
I agree completely that building trust is “key.” I have bought several of the products you recommend. I trusted you when I bought these products and know you will be there if I have questions.
Thanks so much!
Jim, once again a clear dose of reality. The line, “Success online with ANY business DOES NOT START WITH Building a website – it starts by growing a loyal audience.”, should be pasted on the wall of anyone trying to make a go of it online.
So the idea is to build relationships with people?
I’ve seen most of what you mention here over the years.
A good website making commissions slapped by google for who knows what reason and the traffic drying up overnight.
I used to make $800-1200 a month as an eBay affiliate. One change in the eBay program and it’s now in the $40-60 range.
[ Reply from jim ]: Terry, you should know better than anyone the value of having a list of customers that WANT to hear from you. Would you agree that having that is better than the unstedy income of selling to strangers while running the riskof being wiped out suddenly by a google rank shift.
Terry
Sometimes it seems like the more I learn, the dumber I feel. It is like a race with certain IM “gurus” to get the next hot launch out. You are right that building trust is key. That has ALWAYS been the foundation for any successful business.
I’ve been pursuing IM as a hobby for about a year. What you are saying certainly rings true to me. However there is a problem with the time/trust model (for me anyway)…
…one of the reasons I was drawn to affiliate marketing in particular is that it didn’t make me commit. Spend a little time here promoting this, a little time there promoting that…I could start up small affiliate sites as my interests came and went.
To sell based on time and trust means committing myself to a market. I’m afraid I may be to ADD for that!
Thanks, though for a great post!
[reply from Jim]: Just because it’s easier doesn’t mean it will make you money. The era of ‘anonymous’ is dwindling online…put your name proudly on something and own it long term. Put your ADD to work by creating consistent useful content.
Fabulous article Jim! There’s so much BS out there and it’s great to have real experts like you to guide people on a path that works. I’ve enjoyed following you for a couple years now and I’m moving along in my Internet related business (on and offline) very slowly (I own a commercial roofing company too). The slow and steady method works so well. I know a lot of people have been conditioned to be impatient and expect huge results now. What I’ve experienced is that the more focused my time is spent the things I’m actually good at, the more likely I am to see positive results, especially by avoiding costly, nonsense programs.
Again, thanks for the time you’ve spent developing your expertise and sharing it with us.
Nice post Jim. Myriad of bs artists out there praying on the unsuspecting. Your approach resonates with me. Honesty triumphs in the end and builds a much more loyal following.
Jim, I’ve been “playing” with the internet virtually ever since it began. Over the years I must have purchased 100’s of courses from numerous people.
These days, I listen to one person in New Zealand, a relatively new but switched on girl in England, an Englishman in the USA, a female USA national (for copy writing advice)and…yourself. That’s it. These are the ones I TRUST and that word is so important.
The so-called big named gurus still do not “get it” and I doubt ever will – although I have noticed recently that one or two are now claiming to “repent” their past errors. Well we will see.
I will just stick with the five I trust. And thanks.
I always listen to your guidance Jim and am more than happy to share and tweet this posting, especially as it gains greatly in credibility by being devoid of affiliate links or products to sell (I know where to find yours anyway). One of the first things I learned was that before starting a website you should build some credibility first. There are some very easy steps that can speedily be taken such as qualifying as an Ezine Articles Expert Author (it only takes ten approved postings) and listing any qualifications you have in the field you wish to promote. Also, absolutely don’t keep trying to sell. Build trust and a relationship and don’t waste it by promoting junk. Hopefully you’re preaching to the converted in my case.
There is so much truth in what you are saying. Too many people are still selling the dream of getting rich quick and that’s what it is – a dream. An internet business is really like any other business. You need to understand and develop the trust of your customer. And it takes a lot of hard work.
Jim, why are you asking for our comments all the time? Is it because our comments will get your page ranked on Google? I though you didn’t care about SEO. Sorry for this comment I should probably write it and never send it cause I like your stuff but I’m tired of you saying you don’t care about SEO and then asking for our comments on each post you make.
[reply from Jim]: I don’t pursue SEO because it’s such a futile pursuit. I’ll take what google or any other search engine gives me of course, but I let it happen naturally as a by-product of great content. To my knowledge comments left on a blog don’t help with search engine page rank though. I love getting comments because it allows me to see the mindset of the readers. I can determine which articles resonate with my audience that way. I’m here to write about those issues that are most relevant to my audience.
Jim,
Thank you for your inspiration.
Yes – it’s all about shared TRUST with your customers.
I’m learning heaps from your book and beginning to see the results.
Starting ‘small’, but intent on building the right ethos with my business from the outset.
Regards
Gareth
Jim it’s so refreshing to read what you say. I have research a lot about having your own website and how to make it a long term income.
What you have said here is exactly what I have come to conclude from my own research.
So many Gurus make money from the wannabies and happily try and convince them that if they buy some product or the other it will be their income answer.
It maybe a quick fix but the true hard facts are what you spelled out here.
Well done Jim for your frankness
Jim is right when he says people sell information that they don’t use. They sell the sizzle and no the steak. Thanks Jim for your knowledge and willing to share.
For over 30 years as I ran a brick and mortar retail store (until the box stores killed profitability) one thing we built with our customers is trust. Trust that what we said about our product was the truth, trust that we had checked out the product and company before we offered it, and trust that we would be there after the sale to help with any difficulties they had. Trust, there is no replacement for it, you can’t buy it, it’s earned and it does take a little time. The rewards are solid and on-going.
Enjoy your work, Jim, thanks for what you do.
Don
Hi Jim,
Great post, you are one of the few marketers whose list I actually stay on. I’ve made a little money as an affiliate certainly nothing to retire on so this post resonates with me.
One good thing about affiliate marketing though, is that I learned all my traffic building and seo skills doing it.
However, I’ve made more money marketing local businesses with those skills than I’ve ever made with the traditional affiliate model.
Thanks for keeping it real…
[reply from Jim]: Sounds like you are a fan of OfflineBiz.com! ;0) We are hearing a TON of great stories come out of that site these days. Keep up the great work!
Jim, Thanks for your honesty and then consistency of your approach. There is no free lunch and any kind of business takes effort and energy. Those that show us their Ferrari, sell pixie dust solutions, and pump us up with false hope are the scourge of the industry and it will eventually catch up with them.
I am in the process of starting a network and internet marketing business with one of my sons who is in business school. I have been in business for 25 years but have a lot to learn about this world. I have a PhD from the school of hard knocks and know first hand that what you are saying is correct. Regardless of the fad or technique of the day or moment… honesty, great customer support, and delivering more value than people expect is a long term ticket to success in any type of business. I applaud your success and appreciate your willingness to share your experiences.
Jim,
Absolutely spot on. What I really love are the Guru emails who say “don’t trust the gurus”. Then they come out with a new program to sell you. One shiny thing to the next; $77 here, $97 there and of course as you mention the big ones for thousands. I now have a new name for this chasing of information only because it applies to my own life and perhaps others out there swimming in a sea of disinformation.
“Death by a thousand cuts”
Thanks again for being one of the good guys putting out solid information and not slamming my In Box with one offer after another.
Nat
Jim, you’re mostly right about affiliate marketing. There are some super sharp people out there who can make it work for them without establishing a relationship, but it’s very competitive.
The best affiliate marketing happens as a “trusted recommendation” just like you’ve stated.
BTW, I’m sitting here in Costa Rica right now in the middle of a mastermind session. Yesterday we went ATV riding and today we’re going sea kayaking.
We’re missing you!
David
[reply from Jim]: Thanks for rubbing it in about Costa Rica! Great to hear from you David.
Damn it, Jim! Now I’m going to think of Einstein every time I see an email from you! 🙂
Seriously, though, top-notch info, as usual. Telling it straight.
That’s why I open your emails, man.
That’s a lesson everyone should take to heart if they want to make it in this business…
Thanks, Jim.
Thanks for the info Jim. I was thinking of doing some affiliate marketing for one with legal services etc? Hard to copy in any short time. Anyway, now I am rethinking. What about simple ads or links leading to the affiliate page… no contact except with our natural blogging. Just thinking. Thanks for the info.
[reply from Jim]: I’m not saying that all affiliate marketing is bad, but until you know how to attract an audience online it’s useless to try to build a bunch (or even one) affiliate income website.
Hi Jim,
Exactly. Building a list, earning trust then selling stuff you like and believe in is the only way to really do affiliate marketing.
So email marketing to your target list wins again.
Build a list of subscribers, give great content, over deliver, and sell the good stuff that won’t break the bank.
Thanks for always taking the higher road and revealing the truth,
Adrienne
Hi Jim,
It kinda reminds me of the story about the man with the “money” and the man with the “experience”.
After they met the man with the experience had the “money” and the man with the money had the “experience”.
Hopefully, people will get the message and save their money.
As always, sound advice….
Wayne Stanila
Jim, I have long been a follower of yours and in fact you were probably responsible for getting me started online.
I respect your views but I have to say in this instance I believe you are talking absolute rubbish and spreading unfounded hearsay.
Let me explain.
Fist of all, you knock the so called Guru’s, and yes there are people out there who make lots money selling products on how to make money. Anjd they have never done it themselves. We know that. There are however a lot of very good courses and ebooks that will give the newbie and intermediate alike, guidance on how to move there Internet/Affiliate marketing business forward.
After all Jim, to me YOU were a Guru, when I first came across your book Silent Sales Machine. It got me started. What really kicked my business into gear was then spending a load of money to go to an Internet marketing Seminar in Dallas in 2007. I met people like Scott Boulch, John Jonas and Keith Baxter. I made $60,000 the following 12 months applying what I had learned.
Now, the keyword here Jim is APPLYING! the reason most Internet/Affiliate marketers fail is the same reason that they fail in any business. They don’t apply themselves and/or they give up.
They put a half hearted attempt into it and then move on to the next big launch. They are at fault here, not the ‘Guru’! Or not most of the guru’s anyway. What does really p*** me off is when somebody promotes something they haven’t even used.
But back to the point. Of course most people fail in Internet/Affiliate marketing, thats life. Same reason most people fail at eBay and Network Marketing.
They dont put in enough effort and give up before real success comes.
If you gave 5 people a box of umbrellas and put them on a rainy Street Corner in Seattle, 7 would be back home drying off complaining the umbrella business didn’t work, 2 would make some money and one would get rich and sell out the warehouse.
The Affiliate Marketing business does work. If you prepared to apply yourself, put the ours in and build up a relationship with your merchant.
And to say that google doesn’t like Affiliate Marketers Jim is absolutely hogwash. Google bought Performics and has no challenge whatsoever with an affiliate link being on a page, providing that the content itself provides value. Thats what Google is looking for and has no interest whether you are an affiliate or not! Nor does it have any detrimental effect on your rankings.
And to say that Google considers Affiliates content spammers is just the most ridiculous statement I have ever heard Jim!
Some of the biggest corporations in the world reply on there affiliates to bring in new customers and break new markets, and do not consider affiliates expandable. In fact they are strengthening ties with the Affiliate channel.
I know, we work with some of them.
So yea, your right when you say that it takes trust to build an online business and that does take time.
But one thing is for sure, there are no short cuts, and yes you do need a website/blog, and the learning curve is steep.
If you want long term online success, it does start with building a website, or at least some form of online presence.
There is no doubt in my mind that the Affiliate Marketing landscape is changing. We have built a business with a $6/7 million merchant turnover and triple 6 figure income. We should turn over $10 million over the next 12 months.
And I started in a spare bedroom. It can be done. All it takes is a little tenacity a willingness to learn and the determination to apply what you have learned.
You said that you know of no Affiliate Marketeer still having success with the strategies they were using six months ago.
Well, let me introduce you to one, ME!
And how are we doing that? With a site that people want to visit, for good informative content, with good offers for the things they are looking to buy, and a reason to come back.
Are there other things we need to add in to the mix? For sure, but that will come.
So don’t knock the gurus Jim, you’re one of them. So long as they are selling stuff that works for them, and can benifit the buyer, all strength to them.
And please do not put people of Affiliate marketing because all you have done with the above post is put out a lots of negative about an amazing opportunity for people to make life changing income and get out from underneath the rat race.
Just takes a little work, thats all.
[reply from Jim]: I’m glad to hear that I helped turn you on to Internet business! That’s fantastic. Since you are having success with affiliate marketing you are among the 5% that I was talking about. My problem is with those that teach building pretty affiliate sites as the best place to start without revealing all of the hard work that goes into actually succeeding. We’ll have to agree to disagree about Google though because I’ve heard mounting evidence that they aren’t nearly as friendly towards affiliate marketers as they used to be, and that’s a trend that’s not likely to reverse.
Wow Jim,
I’ll bet you’ve ticked off a lot of Guru’s for sharing this information, I wish I had read it when I first started online 4 year ago, it would have saved me a lot of time and money. The fact that so many people are competing to advertise one product can only help one person, the product owner and from what I understand most of them want to find out how to pay affiliates as little as possible. As for me, I’m going to stick to online marketing for offline business. First, its easier, second its a passion of mine to help small business’.
All the best.
Matt
I could write volumes on this particular subject but out of consideration I will not bore your readers to tears. I only wish I had run across an article like this (and had the knowledge at that time to truly understand it) about a year ago.
A year ago I had enough cash in the bank to achieve what I thought was an obtainable goal. My overhead is 5K per month so I figured I would learn the industry in about six months, make a little money at this point and at the end of a year, I was hoping to be breaking even. Now within the next couple of months I am in danger of losing my house. I did not think my goal was too much to ask since so many people were making 100’s of thousands per month, right?
I mean I am no dummy. I have multiple degrees, and have been very successful nationally and internationally training consultative selling and consulting various types of small to large sized businesses. But one year later, I have yet to make a dime.
It is too bad that the success in this internet industry is measured by how well a guru can separate you and your money. I wish it were possible (and I do know its not) to measure the success of the teachers in this industry by the number of successful students they produce. Wouldn’t that be nice.
I do have a problem with internet teachers who adapt the Nike slogan and say “just to it”. It kind of makes sense. They are saying doing something is better than doing nothing at all. You see I am one of those people who needs a well thought out game plan. I tried to follow the just do it mentality for awhile but that always ended in futility in one form or another. Every time I thought I had it all figured out and just did it, I dropped the money to get the needed help only to find out I had erred again and some piece of the puzzle was again missing.
For instance, I actually use to think (believe) these gurus sat around their houses in their pajamas, did all this work themselves and made millions. It took me months to realize they have huge staffs or were outsourcing to the hilt. That is a huge piece of this whole puzzle. Another huge piece is the who you can trust and who you can’t.
I became a fan of your after I read something you wrote that basically said, “I cannot recommend this product. I have not tried it, but if you feel you must have it, please use my link.” I mean how much more honest can a person be. I am also a fan of IM Review where you rank very high, but so does another person whose product ($2000) your comment above was aimed at.
I am a bit surprised (however you do have the benefit of the doubt) with your slight slam on Ebay within this post. One of your biggest products relates to Ebay. I also know that you are pretty proud of a traffic product you have but I am hesitant to buy that because as of yet I do not have a website. I am not totally sure but because of this, such a product may have me spinning my wheels, again!!
I said I would not write a volume and here I have gone and written way to much. Even though I have lots more to say, I will cut it off now. I will close by saying, there appears to be a small groundswell in this industry of people like yourself who believe building trust is a key element in the internet information supply business. It is about time. I hope this knowledge is not coming too late for me. I so want to make a success of my internet based business.
Thanks for the soapbox,
Rick Arnst
Jim,
You say you pay out “fat checks in your affiliate program” Is this still worth doing or have you noticed a drop-off?
http://www.offlinebiz.com/public/department8.cfm
[reply from Jim]: Great question! We are growing quickly at OfflineBiz.com and we are seeing a lot of affiliates succeeding. What these affiliate almost ALL have in common though is that they use the strategy I show above for their affiliate marketing efforts. They aren’t trying to drive SEO traffic to a website that then points to our website. I know of NO affiliate marketers succeeding with that model on any of my products.
I think I am now an expert on how not to make money on the internet.
This article adds to my theory about affiliate marketing: if you don’t have a sales psychology degree how will you compete with the guru’s who do, in an extremely competitive market for the same product? Let’s not mention the large sums of money they throw at advertising every week. I would take a guess and say unless you throw $15k at ppc you wont be in the game at all.
I am about to experiment (with someone else’s money, they are paying me) with a niche movie that no one else has access to, delivering on Blu ray and DVD.
Let’s see if all the lessons I have learned will now payback! As Jim says, not a hard sell, just a fine product.
This is one of the best blog posts I’ve ever read, hands down.
Affiliate marketing as it’s taught now is mostly just a “making money” activity.
There’s a big difference between “making money” and building a REAL business.
When you have your own product, or when you offer something of real value on YOUR OWN, then you can build a real income.
Look at it from Google’s perspective: Why WOULDN’T they want to crack down on all the Adsense-bloated auto-blogs and “review sites”? They add no value. They’re crappy. They add no value. They’re a thin attempt at a money grab.
I speak from experience on this. I have been selling my own products for seven years to a non-make-money niche with a list that’s now close to 50,000 subscribers.
Make no mistake — a portion of my income has come from recommending products from others in my market (meaning I am an affiliate for them) but the only reason I have done so well in selling them is because I have established my OWN credibility and trust.
My business is not at the whim of Google’s fickle algorithm. It’s not precariously dependent upon the companies I’m shilling for (who could at any moment decide to cut my commission percentage or go out of business or not pay me or any number of bad things.)
Sorry to rant like this, but Jim, my hat is off to you because I haven’t heard anyone speak to this like you have before.
Congrats and keep telling it like it is!
Can you give some advice for small businesses that do business both offline AND online, regarding finding affiliates to promote their products.
What type of website owners should we focus on? ie forums, blogs, other ecommerce sites etc. Any tips?
[reply from Jim]: the best place to find high powered affiliates is to search for the “influencers” in your industry, or in related industries that share your same audience. For example, I heard of one marketer that had great success as an affiliate by selling supplemental life insurance to the “RV Enthusiast” crowd. To do some brainstorming type into google some of the top keywords from your industry. See what sites come up on top. Find the sites that are collecting leads (ideally email leads). Contact those site owners with your offer to become an affiliate. It doesn’t matter if it’s a blog, a membership site, an informational site etc. From there branch out and find top sites for other related niche markets. Also -keep in mind that you should be in the “CONTENT” and “INFORMATION” business no matter what business you are in. It’s easier to get affiliates excited about 70% commissions on a lead building report you produce than a 5% commission on a widget. I hope that helps you out!
Jim,
Am I correct in assuming that your article is in reference to being affiliates of “Making Money Online” type programs.
Here is a brilliant affiliate marketing site in an entirely different field and on the first page of google for all of the pages I checked:
http://www.beachcalifornia.com/
What is your take on this type of affiliate marketing?
BTW I came across this site a few days ago by searching for a specific beach in CA and was impressed with the depth of information and the subsequent google rankings.
Bert
[reply from Jim]: You’ve just shown me an example of affiliate marketing done mostly right. 95% of those playing the “affiliate marketing game” after buying a guru course will never have a content rich site like that to show for it. Also -that site is relying heavily on having a good google rank, and that can fade like the wind at any moment. They should be growing a mailing list!
I busted up laughing when I saw the Star Trek analogy. Hope you do not mind if I use that one myself.
[reply from jim]: I borrowed it myself from a different blog, but I couldn’t resist because it’s so true and so funny!
Hi Jim,
Thank you for a great post and a very interesting audio download on the $100 a day.
Just one question. As you know from living in Guatemala, there are places where things just aren’t developed enough to do the offline biz model. However, maybe this would be possibility–could
someone living in Guatemala, for instance, reach out and help US and Canadian brick and mortar businesses? Could that be done effectively, just using email to contact businessses and maybe continuing the relationship with Skype calls? I live in a third worldish place, but I know a fair amount of internet marketing–written articles, some affiliate sales, and so on. Setting-up an opt-in page or getting someone on local search would be easy for me. But I’m far away.
Looking forward to your reply!
[reply from Jim]: We got a testimonial just this week from a young man living in France that is running a very successful “offlinebiz.com” business with clients in the U.S. We’ll be posting his audi-testimonial on the site very soon, so the answer is “yes” – it’s not only possible, it’s being done now!
I don’t think you have to worry about losing any loyal fans! Who cares about the guru’s. Thanks for always being honest and trustworthy. You are living proof that good, honest people can rise to the top by having integrity and doing things the right way.
Hi Jim,
Sorry to say, but this is a very negative article.
Hell, we all might as well just give up now.
so out of 100 people who read this blog post, only 5 will ever make money.
Well guess what, If I wasn’t one of those 100 to try affiliate marketing then I would not have been one of the 5 that have succeeded.
You have to throw your fishing line in the water to get a fish and then another and then another, then pretty soon you can get a small net… then a bigger net and then you learn where the fish swim.
But to your rational thinking, we may as well just give up now.
Not everyone is good at developing trust and authority as this takes a good amount of being knowledgeable about something and sharing it and some people just have nothing to offer.
If I like collecting green socks, should I start a blog about collecting green socks and build trust with my green sock followers and I will make money??
The system is not purfect but you have to at least throw your hat in the ring and have a go at it.
If you fail, then at least you can learn from your mistakes and move forward to what works for you.
[reply from Jim]: I’m not sure how to be positive about an oversold “opportunity” that has a 95% failure rate. To me it feels a bit like trying to stay positive about playing the lottery when 99,999 out of 100,000 people are losing money on it. It requires a great deal of ignoring the odds mixed in with ignorance to stay positive. In the article I’m clearly addressing newbies and trying to save them from pursuing opportunities that consistently elude the vast majority of their peers. There are so many LOW HANGING FRUIT opportunities online, but the allure of “easy money” seems to distract so many from having the success that they could be having. I’m not against affiliate marketing, I’m just trying to paint a more accurate picture of the opportunity and the direction that it’s heading. If affiliate marketing is EASIER three years from now feel free to call me on it and I’ll retract my prediction that it’s going to get MUCH harder in the VERY NEAR future.
I am confused. Do you disocurage any one
from starting affiliate marketing.
what if some one is good in building web sites, Niche research,keywords but not good in writing? How can they write a convincing post like you?
[reply from Jim]: If you are good at building websites, niche research and keyword research you aren’t a “newbie” and are probably qualified to experiment with affiliate marketing…keeping in mind that the long term prospects are likely unsteady. Being convincing isn’t the goal when I write. Being “real” is the goal. Honesty is always convincing.
Re: We’ll be posting his audi-testimonial on the site very soon, so the answer is “yes” – it’s not only possible, it’s being done now!
Jim, How soon is soon? By the “site” I assume you mean offline biz? So to hear the audio we will need to be members?
Thanks–looking forward to it!
[reply from Jim]: It will be in the “success stories” of the OfflineBiz.com site within a day or two. That area of the site is entirely open to non-members as are several sections of the site.
Hi Jim,
Listen up guys to Jim that’s been around the internet since it’s birth.
Affiliate marketing is a tough nut to crack, it took me a long time to wade through all the promoting before I got an angle and the angle is exactly what Jim talks about. Be honest and fair, just the way you’d want to be treated.
Eamon
Hey Jim, yet another fab post mate. Good job!
This is so true and i wish i’d read this almost a year ago now as I fell for the crappy web site spin.
I bought a “niche” site of, i won’t mention any names, some guy for £99 and i waited about 2 or 3 weeks for it and it was just a crappy plr ebook with a so-so sales letter. in fact the sales letter was possibly better than the actual product!!
LEASON LEARNED!
All the best, Robbie
To start with, find a NEED and FILL IT!! Add some GREAT customer service and you will have a RELATIONSHIP forever!!
Sell the product, establish the relationship – I beieve that’s how you did it with the Silent Sales Machine!
Or did you estabish a relationship, then sell your Silent Sales Machine?
Sometimes I think you forget where you came from….
My two cents worth,
John
[reply from Jim]: I’m not sure how what you just said is a demonstration that I’ve forgotten where I came from? How is anyone qualified to comment on that? I agree though with every other point you just made and I’ve made those same points frequently myself – even recently. I do think that “relationship” should come BEFORE a sale though. You’ll have more success that way.
Great post and truer words were never spoken. I finally caught on, the only ones making money are the gurus and their fellow gurus. “Hey Bob, check this out, my friend _______ just launched this great new product and we want you to be one of the first to know about it.” So thanks Jim, you’ve done a great service by posting this on your blog.
Jim – it is about relationships. I don’t like the term “list.” I think of my readers as students who will be with me for a long time.
I wrote an essay last December that resulted in over 500 emails from my readers. At that time I had 15000 subscribers so about 3 percent of my readers took the time to thank me for what I’d written and tell me how my words had effected them.
In the book I’m writing now I mention selling my first book to people who had no need for it. They were buying the book because they wanted to support my efforts. This is the power of the relationship, the power of the connection.
Here’s an interesting side note about affiliate marketing versus relationship marketing – I get more sales from this page — http://www.nalroo.com/fordad.html — GIVING away my materials – than from all my affiliates COMBINED. Note – the video is BROKEN on that page, and that page may be coming down in the near future.
I did an interview a few weeks ago and was asked about high profile guru internet marketers I followed. I couldn’t think of any. When prodded I did admit I read your newsletter, but I don’t think of you as a guru. I think of gurus as hypsters. I think of gurus as arrogant people who erect walls around themselves so people can’t see there isn’t much behind the curtain.
Thank you, Jim! I appreciate the quick reply.
Best wishes,
Jorge
Trust. That is why I have stuck around your newsletter for this long.
I think the another way to start is go to http://www.elance.com, find a skill you are good at and bid for jobs.
If you are really that good, you will get jobs.
That’s what I am doing now; web and graphic design and I started this after I read http://www.offlinebiz.com and I have my first 4 contracts of $500 each. I didn’t even have to pay for membership.
Thanks Jim
So Jim, Does this blog post only apply to the time period after you promoted minisite formula? You promoted this product heavily and it was strictly an affiliate training class on how to create 1000 spam websites that make $1/day with fake reviews, fake personas, etc. Most of the course focused on how to hid your spam tactics from Google to prevent getting your sites delisted. How about giving an apology and a refund to those that purchased this junk because we trusted you. Frankly I lost all trust in you after this experience.
[reply from Jim]: I’ve never endorsed building “spam sites”. This blog post applies NOW more than it did six months ago, and it applies WAY more than it did one year ago. The point I’m making is that it’s getting harder all the time for newbies to build sites that will contain the required quality to make it in a world where not just “good content”, but only “great content” gets ranked. I’ve never endorsed building “junk” sites (even when it was all the rage) and if the minisite course contained that element (which I certainly don’t recall it having) then I am sorry for having endorsed it, but I went through that course thoroughly and I don’t remember that element at all. I specifically remember emphasizing the need for building GOOD sites with GOOD content and automating it by hiring good inexpensive help. It’s not an adventure for newbies though, and it’s gotten harder. If you still want a refund for your time spent on a course I endorsed over a year ago please contact me. My refund policy doesn’t expire.
This is an excellent post, too bad it’s not required reading for all newbies. When I started I followed the advice of several Gurus. Got over that quickly! What I found was, with only one or two exceptions, the Gurus leave out the most important step – traffic. And the ones who sell books on driving traffic sell the same OLD rehashed methods that DO NOT WORK. Like you, I seriously wonder how some of these people live with themselves. Because they get rich by taking advantage of people.
You are right, Jim. To get what you want, help others get what they want. Like many people, I’m on loads of lists and often get several marketers trying to get me to buy the next shiny object through their affiliate link. On the rare occassion that I do buy, who’s link do I go through? Not whoever is offering the most valuable bonuses – I have too many bonuses cluttering up my hard drive already. I buy through whoever has helped me the most through their free content!
I have one more comment. I met some people earlier this year who make money by getting between buyers and sellers. They call themselves affiliates.
They target low competition keyword phrases with small websites. The idea is to get traffic from google they can redirect to merchants.
They talk about building businesses and owning valuable real estate.
They are making money, but what they’ve done is built a job. Jim explained why this is.
Talking with them, I was struck by the thought that they were parasites. They aren’t helping the sale, they are just taxing the few people that end up on their sites.
Contrast that with relationship marketing. In most cases my students don’t even know they need something until I explain it to them.
Jim you gave me a lot more to think about ,because if you really look and listen at what you buying from all these different Gurus or mastermind from what I seen so far they all in some way seem to be saying the same thing.I even found some where they say their going to explain how their system work but always seem to talk about something else first its like they beat around the bush on something that starts to put me to sleep.When I see a lot of these products that have these type of videos on their sale page I have to pass some of them up not all of them but some because it seem some of them sound alike to me even on the sale page they explain things over and over about making the money which you probably read in the first page and its like3-4 pages-too long for me because it seem like they say the same thing over and over.Another thing that happen to me before is I bought a product from a guru $37 and when I got I read it and I like the info it gave me it taught me something but what was night right to me is the next day or so I got it as some bonus or something for free and I was like ain’t this a trick tracy I was kinda of mad but since I like what I read I just left it alone and kept it.This sort of my opinion about some of the stuff I see with online marketing.